Nervous times
The development in Savai’i last week where two babies died after taking their vaccines will only deepen the public’s mistrust in the health system – when it comes to the issue of vaccines anyway.

Helpline soon
So far so good for Samoa Airways, or so we’ve told.
But a good source told B.T.L. that the airline could soon be asking for some financial help to cushion the blows of the tough aviation industry it is trying desperately to crack.

Vanuatu sold Chinese-made planes
Just for the record. The three Harbin Y12F aircraft that the Vanuatu government bought from the Chinese in 2009 were sold in 2015, ironically to make way for new Twin Otter aircraft.

Let’s see proof
If you had listened to Parliament two weeks ago, you would’ve noticed that a certain Cabinet Minister was immodestly praised for turning around the results at the Ministry under his portfolio.

THE BEST
A big fa’amalo to the skilled and courageous E.P.C. staff who braved the winds and rain to restore power from broken and dangerous power lines on Cross Island Road on Wednesday night in pitch darkness.

YOU’RE THE BEST!
Admiration and thanks to the school pupils, supervised by teachers, for manning the pedestrian crossings near schools and keeping their many fellow students and drivers safe on our roads.

Con artist at work
So there is apparently someone conning unsuspecting members of the public at the Land Transport Authority compound. In a public notice, L.T.A has warned members of the public to be alert.

NUMBERS PLEASE
Is it our imagination or has there been a genuine upsurge in the number of tourists in Samoa?
We say genuine, because we are not counting those who are our own ‘sons and daughters (and other aiga) for the return home’!

LATER!
So the new Tanumalala Prison will be finished in about July next year?
Correct us if we’re wrong, but did we not hear our Prime Minister inviting a certain 60 Minutes reporter, Liam Bartlett to the opening of the new prison in June this year?

7 QUESTIONS THAT ARE KEEPING US AWAKE
1. So come July 26, the day after the current Tui Atua is no longer the Head of State, is he still His Highness?
2. After being addressed as His Highness for 10 years, what new honorific if any, will he be known by?

WE DON’T GET IT
How exactly does the Minister of Education’s suggestion of “implementing Christian values within families and villages” solve the situation of alarming numbers of students dropping out of school at an early age (under 14 years of age)?

Times have changed and so have people. There is absolutely no doubt about that regardless of whether we are talking about Samoans or any other ethnic group.
Here on these shores, while we’d like to think that Samoans are civilised people and that our actions will always be dictated by fa’aaloalo, ava fatafata and alofa, we must accept it’s not all that way anymore. For some people.

Attempts by two unidentified men, who tried to attack Prime Minister Tuilaepa Dr. Sa’ilele Malielegaoi in Brisbane, Australia on Wednesday night has shocked the nation and triggered condemnation from various fronts. Our reporter Yolanda Lavata’i speaks to the public to get their views on the issue.

I want to share a reflection on suicide by quoting from a speech I made in 2002 because it is relevant and topical. Rituals also express meaning, nuance and metaphor. During (former) Prime Minister’s Helen Clark’s wreathe presentation at Tamasese’s grave, 4 June 2002, Lufi Falefa and Salani could have chanted the funeral chants, the birth chants, the war chants, the victory chants.

The spears flew towards the youth on the hill, whistling as they cut through the air. Grinning, Queen Medb’s general drew his sword, eager to take back to his Queen the head of this warrior whom they called the Hound of Ulster. He had no doubt his spears would find their mark.